IGN is reporting that J.J. Abrams (Lost producer) is prepared to direct The Dark Tower, based on the Stephen King series.

IGN has exclusively learned that J.J. Abrams is poised to direct The Dark Tower, based on the Stephen King literary series. Abrams’ production company Bad Robot had “no comment” on the matter.

Sources advised us that an official announcement is forthcoming. We have been unable to determine whether Dark Tower will be a film project or a TV miniseries, although the latter is a more likely prospect given the complex nature of King’s seven-book series. Given Abrams’ success on the small screen — and King’s well known love for the Abrams-produced TV series Lost — the tube seems a better fit for The Dark Tower. That said, IGN now has reason to believe the project will be for the big-screen.

Read the full article on IGN.

Updated: Hollywood Reporter also confirms that J.J. Abrams is going to be involved in bringing The Dark Tower to film.

In case you were wondering what to do in an emergency (such as a terrorist attack), just follow these signs. My favorite:

Try to absorb as much of the radiation as possible with your groin region. The current world record is 5 minutes, 12 seconds.

Other emergency situations include fire, terrorist attacks and nuclear warfare. More Emergency Signs

Hate Valentine’s Day? Like destroying things? This video is for you. Watch as the Blendtec blender “Will it blend?” guy blends an annoying musical Valentine’s Day gift.

SciFi has officially renewed Battlestar Galactica for a fourth season (was there really any doubt?). The season will contain at least 13 episodes, and is set to start in January of 2008.

Don’t forget about the planned Battlestar Galactica movie (Spoilers in the link), which is set to be released between seasons 3 and 4. January 2008 is a long time to wait for season 4, but it’s not so bad with the movie releasing in between.

This week’s episode of “The Office” was directed by Joss Whedon. The plot centers around bats. Really. Check out a preview of the episode here:

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) have announced the winners of this year’s BAFTA awards. Here are a few of the highlights:

FILM:
BABEL - Alejandro González Iñárritu/Jon Kilik/Steve Golin
THE DEPARTED - Brad Pitt/Brad Grey/Graham King
THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND - Andrea Calderwood/Lisa Bryer/Charles Steel
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE - Albert Berger/David T Friendly/Ron Yerxa
THE QUEEN - Andy Harries/Christine Langan/Tracey Seaward

ACTOR in a LEADING ROLE:
DANIEL CRAIG - Casino Royale
LEONARDO DICAPRIO - The Departed
RICHARD GRIFFITHS - The History Boys
PETER O’TOOLE - Venus
FOREST WHITAKER - The Last King of Scotland

ACTRESS in a LEADING ROLE:
PENÉLOPE CRUZ - Volver
JUDI DENCH - Notes on a Scandal
HELEN MIRREN - The Queen
MERYL STREEP - The Devil Wears Prada
KATE WINSLET - Little Children

THE ANTHONY ASQUITH AWARD for Achievement in Film Music:
BABEL - Gustavo Santaolalla
CASINO ROYALE - David Arnold
DREAMGIRLS - Henry Krieger
HAPPY FEET - John Powell
THE QUEEN - Alexandre Desplat

View the rest of the nominees/winners.

The Grammy winners for the October 1, 2005 through September 30, 2006 year have been announced. John Williams received recognition for Memoirs of a Geisha by winning the Best Score Sountrack Album. He also won the award for Best Instrumental Composition for A Prayer for Peace from Munich.

To view the rest of the nominees and winners, check the 49th Annual Grammy Awards List.

SoundtrackNet has posted their Pick of the Week - the soundtrack for the movie based on Frank Miller’s 300. There are 30 second sound clips available for each track, although the soundtrack itself will not be released until March 6.

Tyler Bates chose a harsh electronic tone, fused with orchestra and epic choir for the film adaptation of Frank Miller’s graphic novel, 300. This seems like a strange choice, but one has to remember that this film is not trying to be a historical representation of the Spartan’s battle at Thermopylae. Bates’ score uses tones heard in Hans Zimmer’s Black Hawk Down and elements of Bear McCreary’s scores for “Battlestar Galactica”.

Check out the article on SoundtrackNet.

OgMog has posted a writeup of a panel discussion with Heroes executives, including the show’s creators, Tim Kring and Jeph Loeb. The article includes a discussion about future plans for the show, a comparison to Lost-type plot lines, and other info. Warning: If you are not caught up watching the show, there are spoilers in the article.

The Five Year Plan
Unlike other heroinarratives, like LOST, which have begun to meander, the Heroes gang has a five year plan. “We’ve thought about seasons 1-5 and how we might arc them,” said series creator Tim Kring. The creators explained that both specific and general story arcs have been considered far in advance.

Heroes likened to 24, rather than LOST
The creators compared Heroes more to 24 than to LOST, and said that each season will conclude in a way. “The first season will come to a conclusion,” Co-executive producer and comic book guru Jeph Loeb told the audience. “Next season will be a brand new adventure.”

Read more at OgMog (try the Dugg Mirror if the main site is slow or down).

A new upcoming drama series on Fox is called Drive. It was created by Tim Minear (writer for Angel and Firefly), and has Nathan Fillion (Buffy and Firefly) and Amy Acker (Angel) on the cast list. The show is about a secret, illegal road race, and is planned to air this spring. Nathan Fillion is a great actor and I’m looking forward to it.

Fans of Nathan Fillion will especially enjoy this new Drive Promo Video. Thanks to Whedonesque for the news.